I have a HTPC running Intel's i3 2100/1155 socket (video/music only, no games, no overclocking). The stock Intel fan is noisy and is the only fan I hear at the moment. I need to find a silent solution for the CPU noise, without high cost.

The case PWM fans are completely silent, as they don't run. So I presume case cooling is very efficient for the power consumption.

Are there any reviews that compare these coolers with the Intel stock fan?My stock Intel fan runs ~1100 RPM. Not sure if this is the lowest setting for the fan, or the lowest for the temperature. Also difficult to compare it with other fans that go down to 800 RPM @ 8.2 dBA.

Abula, thanks for the helpful information, especially about the maximum fan height for the case.

Thanks Boost for the helpful links. The LGA775 tests provid some good information on how the Intel LGA775 stock cooler compared. It seems at the low power, the stock cooler has good noise level, and not any real advantages until you get into the higher heat/RPM ranges. For the Intel i3/1155 socket, I'm presuming the same/similar Intel stock cooler.

The only cooler that looked better is the Scythe BIG SHURIKEN. But the specifications do not mention compatibility with i3/1155.

My stock fan only goes down to ~1100 RPM, as the ASUS utility only allows me to reduce the fan to 20%. Not sure why the limitation. Perhaps I just need a fan that allows me to go lower than 1100 RPM to achieve silence.

For my needs, it is HTPC, low power, low heat. I'm not trying to solve the problem of making a hot system to quiet. Trying to solve a cool system to silence.

I've been thinking of a passive cooler, but concerned about the occasion I use the CPU near capacity and generating a lot of heat, to which I would need a fan. Also, my PWM case fans don't run; that's how temperature cool my system is.

Perhaps the motherboard/CPU is smart enough to disallow overheating and throttle down? Therefore a passive fan will be silent and safe?

Perhaps the motherboard/CPU is smart enough to disallow overheating and throttle down? Therefore a passive fan will be silent and safe?

Passive with no case airflow is not a good idea, maybe with low powered cpu like atoms/zacates, but with Sandy bridge i wouldnt think of it as safe. But with case fan on, and decent case airflow you might be able to get away with a passive heatsink, depending on what you load your pc with.

Lowest cost solution:Cut the fan/top off the Intel cool stock cooler and replace with the 120mm PWM fan you already have!Or any 80 / 92mm fan, PWM or otherwise, that you like/have.

I was helping a friend quieten a HTPC in Antec fusion case and the worn out stock Intel cooler ended up the noisiest thing. On a E5200 so very cool CPU but only very short aluminium cooler and no copper core unlike the Quad core coolers. We cut the fan off the top and zip tied (zap strap) an Arctic Cooling F9 PWM fan that I had in it's place. Idles at reported 400rpm and very very quiet. Even under Prime 95 load didn't increase speed much. I do like the Arctic Cooling F series fans, maybe more than they deserve but they are reasonable fans and come in F8=80mm, F9=92mm and F12=120mm sizes, all in 3pin and 4pin PWM formats. They also tend to be pretty cheap

I use both the Shuriken and Big Shuriken. They do a good enough job, but are a pain to install (you only want to install them once. In fact on my H67 board, I had to install the RAM first, because the Big Shuriken covered them!

I haven't looked at your case, but I run the Shuriken on a Q8200 without any fan, and the 120mm exhaust fan right near it took care of the rest. Even in a smaller case, my i5 2400 didn't overheat that badly with just 2x80mm Noctua NF-R8 exhaust fans at 900rpm. They just took longer to get back to an idle temp. Since your i3 runs cooler than either, you should be fine.

I have a Sandy Bridge G620 with a Noctua NH-C12P that's running fanless in a Silverstone GD05 with Nexus 120mm case fans at 5v. Last I tested it, it didn't get above the low 50s running Intel Burn Test. Those cases have really good airflow to the CPU area.

The NH-C12P is not cheap by any means, but it's very quiet and effective.

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